Reconyx SC10 User manual
SC10 Solar Charger
Copyright: October 2020
©RECONYX, Inc.
Getting Started
1) Connect the SC10 internal battery.
Your SC10 comes with the red wire disconnected from the positive terminal on
the battery.
Use the Thumb Screw on the back of the unit to loosen the top/front of the unit
from the back/bottom. Rotate the top/front forward to reveal the SC10 battery.
Remove the plastic cap from the positive terminal on the battery and plug the
red wire onto this terminal.
Close the unit and tighten the thumb screw to hold the two halves together.
2) Connect the SC10 to the camera by plugging the shielded power cable into the
external power jack on the bottom of your cellular camera.
3) Turn on your camera (with no internal batteries inside) to test and see if
everything is working.
4) Optionally, you can now install a set of Lithium batteries inside the camera if you
would like to have a backup power source in case someone or something
unplugs or cuts the shielded cable going between the camera and the SC10
Solar Unit.
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SC10 Solar Charger Overview
The SC10 Solar Charger is a great complement to your Reconyx Cellular camera.
The SC10 is a complete power supply system that includes a 10-Watt solar panel with
a 108 Watt Hour (9 Amp Hour) Sealed Lead Acid battery. The Lead Acid battery was
chosen because it is a tried and true battery chemistry that will run in the hottest
summers and coldest winters that most of us will ever experience.
With the SC10, you can power your cellular camera indefinitely with power from the
sun. For cellular users that can mount the SC10 in a spot that gets a few hours of
direct sunlight per day, this unit should provide sufficient power to run your cellular
camera indefinitely.
If you can get the SC10 in full sunlight, at mid-latitude locations, it should provide
enough power to take and send 500 to1000 pictures per day through the cellular
modem. Most users will never need nor want to send this many pictures.
If you cannot get enough sunlight, or you are needing to send a very large number of
photos, you can daisy chain more than one SC10 together to double or triple the
power available to your camera.
Warranty
RECONYX®warrants this product to be free of manufacturer’s defects in materials and
workmanship for a period of 1 year from date of original purchase. If during this period, through
normal use, the product fails due to defects in materials or workmanship, RECONYX®will either
repair or replace the product at our sole discretion. This warranty is void if a product failure
results from “acts of God”, accident, abuse, improper use, disassembly, or unauthorized
maintenance and repair.
NOTE: If you have any questions or concerns relating to the operation or
functionality of your camera with the SC10 Solar Charger, please
contact our Technical Service Department by email at
©RECONYX, Inc.
Mounting the SC10
Integrated T-Post (Star Post) Mount
The SC10 is designed to sit atop almost any “T-post” style metal fencepost (also
works with "Y" and "Star" posts) and can be rotated 360 degrees.
Rotate the unit so that it is facing the direction where it will get the most hours of
sunlight during the day. Then lower it onto the post until the post is fully inserted in
the slot. Gravity will hold the unit on to the post.
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Using the Camera T-Post mount with the SC10
A great way to deploy your SC10 Solar unit and
HyperFire 2 Cellular camera is to mount both of them to
the same T-Post. This allows you to put the camera
exactly where you want it and more than likely get sun on
the correct face of the Solar unit at the same time.
The T-Post Camera Mount is sold separately, and
can be purchased at www.reconyx.com.
Note: We do not recommend setting the SC10 on the ground. There are two primary
reasons for this: 1) snow, 2) foliage. You don’t want the unit covered by snow or
hidden by vegetation. You want the face of the SC10 to get as much sunlight as
possible.
©RECONYX, Inc.
Mounting with Screws
The SC10 can also be mounted on a post, wall, or tree using a couple of screws or
lag bolts; one to hang the unit on, and one to keep it from rotating.
©RECONYX, Inc.
Connecting the System
Connecting to Camera
The SC10 comes with a 12-foot power cable that is wound around the keeper cleats
on the back side of the unit. This provides you with enough cable to hopefully mount
the SC10 where it can get the most sunlight (up to 12 feet from the camera). There is
a hold down under these cleats to clip the cable into to hold excess wire on the cleats
if your camera is closer than 12 feet.
Note the Input Jack on the right side as you look at the back of the unit. This is the
input for daisy chaining more than one solar unit together. There are two basic
reasons you might daisy chain: 1) you need to take and send a lot of pictures, and
one unit won’t keep up, 2) you are under canopy and you are not getting enough
sunlight to recharge the SC10 internal battery to keep up with even a moderate level
of activity. To daisy chain the SC10s, just plug the output from one into the input of
the other, and then plug the output from that one, into the camera. You can add as
many units as you need to in this fashion.
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Using Desiccant in your Camera
Long Term Deployment with Internal Backup
When you are deploying your camera for long term operation (a year or greater), we
highly recommend that you use one of our desiccant options inside of your camera to
absorb any moisture that can penetrate the seals over time with the heating and
cooling cycles of the day. This will ensure your camera runs at an optimal level for as
many years as possible.
If you are using internal backup batteries, your desiccant option is to use our
desiccant sheets. They lay over top of the batteries and absorb moisture that may
enter the camera over time. These are available at www.reconyx.com.
©RECONYX, Inc.
Long Term Deployment without Internal Backup
If you choose to deploy without internal backup batteries, you have an even better
desiccant option. This is the 14-gram indicating desiccant pouches we have available
on our web site as well. You can put one or two of these in the cameras in place of a
bank of batteries. These pouches are indicating. The little strip across the middle
allows you to see inside the pouch. If the pellets are blue, they are dry. When they
turn pink/white, they need to be recharged. You can recharge them by placing on a
cookie sheet in a low oven (170F). Bake them dry and you can re-use them.
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Camera Setup
Setting Battery Type on Camera
In the setup for the camera, find where you choose Battery Type.
When you find this option, Choose SC10 Solar for your setting. This will provide you
with % battery readings that are appropriate for the SC10 Solar unit.
We recommend that you try to run your camera at an activity level where your internal
battery rarely goes below 25%. This will give you the longest life possible for the
internal battery.
You have the option of installing a set of Lithium batteries inside the camera that can
act as a battery backup to the solar unit. If a Saber Tooth Squirrel were to chew
through your cable, or someone/something unplugs the cable from the camera, the
internal batteries will take over and keep your camera running.
Note, if your camera reads 0% while set to SC10 and it is still running for some time,
you can be pretty sure something has gone wrong, and it is running on its internal
batteries. In this case you may want to plan a trip to the camera to check it out. If
you have a sunny day and the % goes back up, then you know the Solar unit is
working and it was likely too many clouds, or too much drain on the batteries that got
you into this state. In this case you may want to buy another SC10 unit to daisy chain
to prevent over stressing your battery.
©RECONYX, Inc.
Copyright & Trademark Information
Copyright October 2020
Other trademarks and registered trademarks referred to in this document:
•HyperFire2™is a trademark of RECONYX®
All other trademarks and copyrights referred to are the property of their respective owners.
RECONYX, Inc.
3828 Creekside Ln
Holmen, WI 54636
866-493-6064
www.reconyx.com
Manual Version: 20201001
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